The festivals of Christmas and Hanukkah are celebrated at similar times of year all over the world. Despite their similarities in timing, the two holidays have very distinct traditions and meanings for their respective religions. So, what do Christmas and Hanukkah really have in common?
Main Festive Seasons Overlapping
The most noticeable similarity between Christmas and Hanukkah is that both are essentially festive seasons. For Christians, Christmas is a time of celebration of the birth of Jesus and many cultures around the world use the season to give presents and share joyful meals together. Hanukkah is similar in that Jews around the world celebrate the miracle of the oil lasting for eight days, in which commemorative foods are eaten and presents and donations are exchanged. As both occur roughly around the same time of year, many non-religious people treat them almost interchangeably.
Similar Gifts and Gifts Exchanged
A more tangible similarity between the two holidays is the fact that both involve the exchange of presents. On Christmas, family members often give each other gifts ranging from mass production items from a store to handmade pieces. On Hanukkah, among the presents gifted, the tradition of giving children a certain amount of money with each night of Hanukkah remains strong – this is called a Hanukkah gelt. Both festivals also share in the tradition of decorating the home in celebration of the respective festivals, with Christmas trees illuminated by bright Christmas lights and Hanukkah bushes adorned with seasonal Stars of David to celebrate the freedom of the Jews in the Maccabean Revolt.
Religious Celebrations
The main underlying similarity between Christmas and Hanukkah is that both are religious celebrations. Even though some aspects of both, such as gift exchanges, are adopted by people of other faiths or no faith at all, both have origins deeply rooted in religion. Christmas, for Christians around the world, is the celebration of Jesus’ birth each December 25th. Hanukkah is the Jewish Festival of Lights, which celebrates the sanctity of the Jewish Temple and the reclaiming of Jerusalem at the time of the Maccabean Revolt.
In conclusion, although the two festivals of Christmas and Hanukkah occur at a similar time of year all over the world, their titles and traditions come with a wealth of religious and cultural history that make them unique from each other. From the tangible such as the gifts exchanged to the intangible of both holidays rooted deeply in their faiths, it is clear that while Christmas and Hanukkah may have some similarities, their differences mark them out as memorable festivals in their own right.
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Last update 2023-11-27. Price and product availability may change.